Copyright: Forest Software 2004
Citation: Extracted from the Forest 2000 Help file


Welcome

Forest Software's

Forest 2000 PRO

Stock/Invoice/Order Manager

A purpose designed program for Independent Dealer's

This program has been written by an independent dealer with the emphasis on ease of use from the parts counter or reception. The concept has been to provide the 'independent' with a simple yet efficient control over his business whilst at the same time enabling him to project a professional image to customers and give a enquiry response time second to none.

The program is supplied in both a BASIC version and a PRO version. Not all facilities conatined in this help file exists in the BASIC version.

Please read our warning about the use of data warning and the limit our liabilities

Specific help is available on each subject but for your convenience here are a few easy links:

Overview (program princles)

Frequently asked questions

Support

As fellow professionals within the same industry your comments and suggestions are always welcome.


Warning

Disclaimer

This software is provided to the user "as is".   Forest Software makes no warranties, either express or implied, with respect to this software and/or associated materials provided to the user, including but not limited to any warranty to merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose or against infringement. Forest Software does not warrant the functions contained in the software will meet your requirements, or that the operation of the software will be uninterrupted or error-free, or that the defects in this software will be corrected. Furthermore Forest Software does not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of use of the software or any documentation provided herewith in terms of their correctness, accuracy, reliability, or otherwise. No oral or written information given by Forest Software shall create a warranty or in any way increase the scope of this warranty.

Limitation of liability

Forest Software is not liable for any claims or whatsoever including property damage, personal injury, intellectual property infringement, loss of profits, or interruption of business, or for any special, consequential or incidental, however caused, whether arising out of breach of warranty, contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability, or otherwise.

All data supplied or used within this program is the sole responsibility of the purchaser of the program. All data usually belongs to someone and if that someone is a manufacturer then that manufacturer may prohibit the use of it's data in electronic form.

Forest Software has not sold you nor will ever sell you any data. We will however accept instructions from any purchaser of our program to manipulate data which that purchaser may legally acquire so that the program will be able to read it.

END-USER LICENSE AGREEMENT FOR THIS SOFTWARE

Important - read carefully:

This End-User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between you (either an individual or a single entity) and the author of this Software for the software product contained herein, which includes computer software and may include associated media, printed materials, and "online" or electronic documentation ("SOFTWARE PRODUCT"). By installing, copying, or otherwise using the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, you agree to be bound by the terms of this EULA. If you do not agree to the terms of this EULA, do not install or use the SOFTWARE PRODUCT.

SOFTWARE PRODUCT LICENSE

The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is protected by copyright laws and international

copyright treaties, as well as other intellectual property laws and treaties. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is licensed, not sold.

1. GRANT OF LICENSE. This EULA grants you the following rights

Installation and Use.

You may install and use this SOFTWARE PRODUCT according to the number of licenses purchased and registered with the author. You may not distribute additional copies of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT to other parties not authorized by the author. You may not install the SOFTWARE PRODUCT on more computers than those for which you have purchased a license.

2. DESCRIPTION OF OTHER RIGHTS AND LIMITATIONS.

Limitations on Reverse Engineering, De compilation, and Disassembly. You may not reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the SOFTWARE PRODUCT, except and only to the extent that such activity is expressly permitted by applicable law notwithstanding this limitation.

Separation of Components.

The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is licensed as a single product with additional licenses available for networking. Its component parts may not be separated for use on more than one computer.

Software Transfer.

You may permanently transfer all of your rights under this EULA, provided the recipient agrees to the terms of this EULA.

3. COPYRIGHT.

All title and copyrights in and to the SOFTWARE PRODUCT (including but not limited to any images, photographs, animations, video, audio, music, text, and "applets"  incorporated into the SOFTWARE PRODUCT), the accompanying printed materials, and any copies of the SOFTWARE PRODUCT are owned by the Author of this

Software. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT is protected by copyright laws and international treaty provisions. Therefore, you must treat the SOFTWARE PRODUCT like any other copyrighted material.

4. U.S. GOVERNMENT RESTRICTED RIGHTS.

The SOFTWARE PRODUCT and documentation are provided with RESTRICTED RIGHTS. Use, duplication, or disclosure by the Government is subject to restrictions as set forth in subparagraph (c)(1)(ii) of the Rights in Technical Data and Computer Software clause at DFARS 252.227-7013 or subparagraphs (c)(1) and (2) of the Commercial Computer Software-Restricted Rights at 48 CFR 52.227-19, as applicable.

5. MISCELLANEOUS

If you acquired this product in Austria, this EULA is governed by the laws of Austria.

If this product was acquired outside Austria, then local law may apply.

Should you have any questions concerning this EULA, or if you desire to contact the author of this Software for any reason, please contact him/her at the email address in the help file or below

LIMITED WARRANTY

NO WARRANTIES.

The Author of this Software expressly disclaims any warranty for the SOFTWARE PRODUCT. The SOFTWARE PRODUCT and any related documentation is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, without limitation, the implied warranties or merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non infringement. The entire risk arising out of use or performance of the  SOFTWARE PRODUCT remains with you.

NO LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES.

In no event shall the author of this Software be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or any other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use this product, even if the Author of this Software has been advised of the possibility of such damages. Because some states/jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages, the above limitation may not apply to you.

6. LICENSES

You agree that you will only install this software in accordance with the license granted to you by FOREST SOFTWARE which accords with the number of licenses that you have paid for. You agree that if you wish to run the program on another machine you will first seek permission and pay accordingly.

Any attempt to install on another location without permission should render the entire program un useable, may destroy the original copy and will certainly corrupt your data.

Free demonstrations of this program are available therefore if an illegal copy is discovered then it will be deemed to have been purchased without payment and recompense will be sought not only for the cost of the program but also for the expenses incurred to discover the copy and all legal costs involved.

Author	:	Ian Robinson

Product :	Forest Software

EMail	:	ian@forest2000.co.uk

Address:	19, Knox Rd

Brockhollands

Lydney

Glos

GL15 4PR

Telephone	+ 44 (0)1594 822606 Normal business hours

+ 44 (0)1594 564038 Home (emergencies only)

+ 44 (0)7718 806006 UK mobile

+ 34 653 209 592 Overseas mobile

Copyright	Forest Software ©1997-2004


Support

Support Contracts

We rely on an annual program support contract (details below) to ensure that we remain here developing your software and generally keeping abreast of developments so that we can continually improve the product you have purchased.

There is NO support available for non contract holders.

Annual Support Contract

What is support :

Support is for our program, your forest data and your suppliers prices.

It includes free program updates as and when available for Win98, XP, Win2K, as many data correction and advice calls related to Forest Software as you may need, supersession information (as available), and supplier price updates where the supplier converts their data at their expense and where that supplier authorises their prices to be on your system.

The contract works like an insurance policy therefore you cannot pay a premium just because you have a claim. Expired contracts have a 30 day qualifying period.

What is NOT support :

We provide a professional computer service throughout the UK.

If you employ a local specialist please do NOT expect us to provide our knowledge to help them make their money. Even though they are working on your behalf you are paying them for their work so a support call from your local specialist will be charged as a non contract holder (see prices).

We do NOT cover hardware, replacement of hardware, networks, the operating system, internet problems, virus infections or problems caused by the installation of third party software but can provide all computer related services if required.

Supplier's data is NOT available to non contract holders

All Services :

Are offered throughout the year except for 4 weeks annual vacation when temporary

telephone advice only may be available.

All prices are subject to the addition of VAT at the prevailing rate.

For support please call:

 	01594 564457 (office hours)

01594 564038 (outside office hours - emergencies only)

07718 806 006 (UK mobile)

00 34 653 209 592 (overseas)

Before calling please stop and 'think' about the steps you took immediately before the problem occurred and note them down whilst fresh in your mind. Accurate fault reporting saves much time and reduces frustration. Often our main difficulty is in understanding what led to the problem.

Our program gives you a gentle reminder 14 days before exipry date and after expiry date there is a 20 second 'nag' screen which can be eliminated with a contract code.

To facilitate these support options we supply Pc anywhere which will allow us to access your computer from our base but only when you invite us to do so.

During the course of your 'support year' you will be entitled to the following services depending on which level of contract you have.

We can undertake annueal servicing outside the scope of the contract and would be pleased to quote


Restore
Re Install

Restore Data

Should you wish to restore an earlier version of data you should follow these guidelines.

Study the topics in this help file on Support, Networking, Backing up data

Whether you are a single user or a network user the principles are the same in that you have only one data folder which has to be poulated with your latest backed up data. Since our program receives on going development all interdepenant files are saved in each backup and they must all be restored to their correct locations for the program to work.

(e.g. Version 704 program will not function against version 705 data and visa versa !)

Automatic restore is available from version 707 onwards under the menu item UTILITIES/MANAGE DATA

to Manually restore...

1. Backup your existing data to an identifiable area eg c:\backup\prerestore

2. Delete the existing files in the ...forest\stock\data folder

3. Copy the required data back into the empty ...forest\stock\data folder

4. Copy the backed up program (forest4.exe) to the forest\stock folder

5. Copy the backed up utility (makeindex.exe) to the forest\stock\utils folder

6. Run the utility makeindex.exe (located in the ...forest\stock\utils folder)

Once you are sure that you have restored the correct data you should make a new backup to a new identifiable area eg c:\backup\afterrestore

Please note there is a distinction in your support contract over what is covered and what is not. In brief under the support contract we will help you restore a backup data set but configuring new hardware/networks is outside the scope of the contract.


About

Forest Software

was formed as a subsidiary of Forest Land Rovers because when Forest Land Rovers decided to computerize the stock control/invoicing system it was found that there wasn't a suitable program available to give the professional response that was sought. So we set about writing a program to manage the business in a simple yet competent way.

This resulted in a DOS based program which about a dozen other Land Rover independents bought for their businesses. DOS programs being menu based became too restrictive so with the advent of Windows we converted the program into the present platform.

The program is in use at over 60 Independent garages and parts suppliers specialising the vehicles of the Land Rover marque and is established as the market leader.

The program has moved away from it's simplistic origins and now provides may management tools to encourage greater profit control.


FAQ's

Frequently asked questions

Computer system...

How to survive a server crash ?

How do I configure a network ?

How do I re install my system

The program seems to be running slow ?

Orders...

A part on my orders form is missing a price ?

Printing...

How can I avoid showing a list price when my price is greater ?

How can I print more than one copy of the invoice ?

Customers...

Retail less 20% does not work, why ?

How do I change a customer's terms ?

How can I get a list of customers ?

Invoices...

Failed to issue an invoice ?

How do I create a credit ?

How can I change from 'CASH' to 'ACCOUNT' ?

History...

How to view invoices in a different order ?

Parts Searching...

My supplier's price has disappeared ?


Credits

To issue a credit you simply 'SELL' a negative amount.

In Part search enter a "-1" in the sell how many box.

In Write on invoice enter a "-1" in the qty box


List Price

The program will never embarrass you by printing a list price if your price is greater or you may switch off the printing of list price in settings, printing

If you screen is within view of the customer you may want to turn off list prices in the invoice options.


Server crash

INSTRUCTIONS FOR ELIMINATING A SERVER FROM A NETWORK SYSTEM

If you loose the use of a server you can still continue your business by following these instructions. Please read them through once first. They are simple enough but have to be done methodically and accurately to work.

NT SERVERS ONLY

You will first have to switch all workstations that you need as a temporary measure to log onto a workgroup instead of a domain. To do this right click on NETWORK NEIGHBOURHOOD and select PROPERTIES.

In the configuration window select 'Client for Microsoft Windows' and click on PROPERTIES.

Uncheck the box called 'Log onto Windows domain' and in the lower box select the bottom option called 'Logon and restore network connections'. Click on OK, and you will return to the configuration page. Select the IDENTIFICATION page.

In the box called Workgroup enter "temp" (no inverted commas). Note: be sure to enter EXACTLY the same characters in EXACTLY the same case. Write down the COMPUTER NAME. Click OK, you may be asked for your Windows disk.

Locate the latest data and if it is not already in a folder on a workstations HDD then copy it there from your latest backup. Right click on START, click on FIND. In the box called 'named' type in "sequence.db" (no inverted commas), in the box called 'look in' type in "C:\" (no inverted commas). Make sure the 'include subfolders' box is checked and click FIND NOW.

Expand the box to full screen and look for the location of the file with the latest date. This will identify the location of your latest data. Write down the name of the folder.

Now you must let other computers see this data by setting up a 'share'. Right click on START, select EXPLORE and using either the scroll bars on the right side of the left hand window or the up and down arrows on the keyboard find the folder name. Right click on the folder and select SHARING...Select SHARED AS and in the box called 'Share Name' type in "Tempdata". Come down to ACCESS TYPE and select FULL, then click on APPLY, then on OK.

You now need one more share which can be anywhere. If there's a folder called c:\temp use that, if not use c:\windows\temp. Whichever you choose does not matter but establish a share by right click on the folder and select SHARING...Select SHARED AS and in the box called 'Share Name' type in "Network". Come down to ACCESS TYPE and select FULL, then click on APPLY, then on OK.

You have to now get the program to look at this location for it's data by using the BDE Administrator on each workstation. Usually a shortcut to this file has been placed in the Start menu in the Forest Software folder. If not then as before Right click on START, click on FIND. In the box called 'named' type in "bdeamin.exe" (no inverted commas), in the box called 'look in' type in "C:\" (no inverted commas). Make sure the 'include subfolders' box is checked and click FIND NOW.

When the program is found double click on it to run it.

Click on OBJECT, select SAVE AS CONFIGURATION, and when the 'save as' window appears in the box called 'File Name' type in "Normal" (no inverted commas), then click SAVE. Do the same again but this time type in "Temp" (no inverted commas). You have now saved the normal configuration to return to later and made a new one called Temp which you are now going to edit.

In the 'databases' window you will find an entry called FOREST4DB. Click on this and some settings will appear in the right hand window. You need to edit the PATH to point at the temp data. It must start with 2 backslahes "\\" then the name of the computer that you wrote down in step 2 above then another backslash "\" then tempdata. (no spaces). The finished entry will be something like

"\\counter1\tempdata" (no inverted commas)

Now save this change by right clicking in the left hand window on the FOREST4DB and select APPLY.

Click on the CONFIGURATION tab and expand the configuration folder to DRIVERS, then to NATIVE, then to PARADOX which will display some properties in the right hand window. Change the NET DIR to the same format as above i.e. 2 slashes followed by the computer name followed by 1 slash then "stocknet" (no inverted commas).

Now save this change by right clicking in the left hand window on the PARADOX and select APPLY.

Click on the X in the top right corner of the BDE Administrator and you will asked if you wish to use this configuration as the default; you should select YES.

That's all there is to it, simply repeat the process on each machine that you want to refer to this temporarily data.

WINDOWS 98 PEER to PEER NETWORK

1. Find your latest good copy of data and copy it to a fresh location on your most powerful workstation

2. Share that location as "Data"

3. Create an new folder called Newtwork and share it as "Network"

4. Close all workstations except your temporary one

5. Rename the temporary workstation as "master"

6. Reboot it and run the utility called "MakeIndex.exe" which will be fould in the same location as your data files

7. Check that the program runs OK on the temporary server

8. Open up the other stations which should still be 'pointing' at \\master for their data


Supplier's Prices

The program considers that a price that is more than 10 months old is no longer a true comparison and therefore does not display it. It does still display the supplier to indicate that it's price is out of date.

Supplier's prices are dated when editted or when a price update disk is supplied


Keyboard Shortcuts

KEY	TOPIC	AVAILABLE FROM

f1	Help	Open Invoices

f2	Customer	Open Invoices

f3	Parts	Open Invoices

f4	Orders	Open Invoices

f5	History	Open Invoices

f6	Suppliers	Open Invoices

f7	Jobs	Open Invoices

f8	Contacts	Open Invoices/Invoices/Jobs/History

f9	Notes	Open Invoices/Invoices/Jobs/History


Overview

The program is designed to issue invoices to your customers whilst at the same time keeping track of your stock levels and values and maintaining a record of the items you need to order.

It caters for customers with retail, trade, and super trade terms all of which can be varied by a percentage and will compare prices for the same part number from different suppliers.

The program does this by maintaining a series of open invoices to which parts may be added at any time. As parts are added from stock the quantity in stock falls accordingly and if it falls below what you have set as the minimum level then that part will be added to the order.  When you access the order manager you will be presented with price comparisons if alternative suppliers carry that part and you have entered it in their supplier database. The invoice carries a running total but does not become a proper VAT invoice until it is issued to the customer at which time it is copied into a history file from which you may 'batch' up a group of invoices into an accounts report.

Enquiries are dealt with speedily from the front page of open invoices where a single key stroke  will open a part search form where you can search by part number or description.

Contacting a customer is catered for from either the invoice itself or from the list of open invoices or even from the history file with one key stroke.

The program makes for quick quotations by providing you with the facility to 'build' up jobs for all your regular jobs which you can later add to an invoice in one move. Simply join a job to an invoice opened in a customer name and all stock levels will be adjusted, orders generated, invoice calculated in one move.

The program will run across a network however careful consideration must be given to the settings to be deployed for successful operation.

We recommend that the following 2 pages are essential reading, backup data, and housekeeping


Open Invoices

This is the program's front screen where a list of open invoices or ongoing jobs is held until the invoice is issued to a customer at which point it becomes a VAT invoice. Until it is issued it can be opened, altered, and closed again at will.

Changes elsewhere in the program are reflected here if valid. If you change a parts price and that part is on an invoice the change is reflect here and the invoice values recalculated.


Open Invoice Grid

Double click on an invoice to open it.


Delete an Invoice

Deleting an invoice will give you the option to return the parts to stock on not.

If parts are returned to stock order levels are recalculated.


Contact

This will display a box of customer information


Open Invoice Menu

File

Exit

Reports

Accounts

Stock values

Stock List

Reminders

Labour Analysis

Customers

Settings

Automatic backup

Computer function

Company detail and program settings

Discount Codes

Employees

Reset password

Printer settings

Terms text

Vat rates

Manual Stock adjustment

Utilities

Activity log files

Backup

Hot keys


Reports, accounts
Batch invoice report, for accounts

If you have registered an accounts program in your Company settings you will have the option to produce a hardcopy or an import file for your accounts program or both. It is recommended that you produce both. You may choose either all unbatched invoices or reprint an existing batch. A hardcopy batch report will serve as a VAT cash book. It lists the values and details of each invoice and summarizes them into convenient tables. From this report you can enter manually into your accounts program. The sections summarized are:

Cash sales

which can be checked against cash in the till

Credit/Debit cards sales

which can be checked against the vouchers to hand

Cheque sales

which can be used to prepare bank pay in slips

Account sales

which can be manually entered into an accounts program to monitor statements

Also summarized for VAT reporting purposes are

Standard sales

normal sales within the UK

Export sales to areas in the EU

Export sales to areas outside the EU

If you have Profit Control switched on then you will also see departmental breakdown of invoices and their profit contribution to the whole which is printed on the summary.

Export a batch to a CSV (comma seperated value) file

Having run an account report above you may export it to a comma separated value file for importation into an accounts program.

You may then select which fields you require from by checking the boxes

Typical output appears like this

60,2687,29/10/1999,"GEOFF HARRIS TRANSPORT",167,250,0.00,250.00,ACCOUNT,

60,2686,29/10/1999,"GEORGE FAWCETT",168,55.82,9.77,65.59,ACCOUNT,

60,2685,29/10/1999,"#CASH SALE#",1,65.47,11.46,76.93,CREDIT CARD,

 Daily invoice report for management

This will produce a report similar to a batch report for today ONLY and it will NOT batch up the invoices. It's purpose is to facilitate cashing up at the end of the day and provide management reporting of profit on the day's invoices.


Import accounts

Since we have no access to the source code of the account programs that you are using all we can do is export the data in a format that is required by the accounts program. It follows that you must set up both Forest and your accounts program to 'match' their fields.

In Forest you can set various options in the Company settings page. In your accounts program it is important that it is set up to accept the data correctly and in this regard we recommend that your seek professional accountancy advice.

Exporting your data into an accounts package is a two stage process which when properly mastered will save hours of duplicted time. Firstly, you must identify which accounts program you are using so the program will know in which format to export the data. Secondly you have to open your accounts program and import the data.

It is reccommended that you backup your accounts data before each import.

Currently supported accounts packages are

Quickbooks 2001

Sage Line 50


Quickbooks
Forest Export to Quickbooks

Versions currently tested are 5.0, 2001(v9), 2002(v10)

Please note: Later versions of Quickbooks (2003 & 2004) have not followed the conventions used to build the export file in one particular area. Forest invoice number for sales other than Accounts receivable items do not get imported properly into Quickbooks Instead this number gets imported into the Quickbooks "P.O.Num" field which can be displayed in the Quickbooks invoice but will not appear in the Account display. This means that Quickbooks statements (from Account Receivable) will display invoice numbers correctly but tracing invoice number must be done through reports rather than the account listings.

Introduction

Customer details and Sales Invoices can be transferred from Forest to Quickbooks by exporting the data into a file which Quickbooks can import straight in.  The file contains the latest address phone and contact details for each customer for whom an invoice is included, together with the invoice and line detail. Using this facility saves re-keying information into Quickbooks and therefore saves time and improves accuracy.

The operation of this facility is linked to the Batch Processing of invoices within Forest.  Whenever a batch report is produced for accounts, there is the option to produce that report solely on paper, solely as a file for import to Quickbooks, or both.  We recommend both.

Wealth Warning

Every effort has been made to ensure that this export/import routine and its associated settings will improve and enhance the efficiency of your accounting practices.  However, all businesses differ in their requirements and you should therefore liaise with your accountant or other professional adviser and ensure that the settings and accounting structure you want to use match your commercial business accounting and taxation requirements.  It will be irritating and expensive if you leave it until the end of your accounts year and find that half the savings you have made using this routine are spent on accountants re-analysing your expenses!

Setting up

In Forest you must select which account program you want to configure Forest for by clicking on Settings - Company detail and program settings - Account settings.

In order to set up Quickbooks for use with this facility you will need to ensure that there are accounts available in Quickbooks to receive the data exported from Forest.  Then Forest needs to know the names of those accounts.

The easiest way to accomplish this is to use the standard accounts we have set up as default Quickbooks accounts within Forest.  The following table shows the default Quickbooks settings in Forest:

Forest Transaction	User Definable Import Field
Vat Code for Exports	ZX
Vat Code for European Exports	ZEU
Sale on Account	Accounts Receivable
Sale paid by CASH (money)	Cash Account
Sale paid by CHEQUE	Cash Account
Sale paid by CREDIT CARD	Card Account
Sale paid by DEBIT CARD	Card Account
Invoice Line – not stocked	Non Stock Item
Invoice Line – stocked	Stock Item
Invoice Line – labour	Labour Charges
Invoice Line – one off order	Stock Item
Invoice Line - text	Non Stock Item

“Accounts Receivable” must be an account of type “accounts receivable” and will receive the value of invoices raised on accounts terms.  This enables you to track amounts owing to the business, send statements etc.

“Cash Account” and “Card Account” must be accounts of type “Bank Account” and will receive the value of invoices paid by cash cheque credit card or debit card (see bookkeeping guide notes below).

“Stock Item”, “Non Stock Item” and “Labour Charges” are all sub accounts of Sales, and must be type “Income”. You may simplify this breakdown of Sales into 'Parts', 'Labour' but to accomodate this simplification you must change the invoice line settings above (excl labour) to 'Parts'.

“VAT Control” should also be present in the Quickbooks chart of accounts as an “Other Current Liability” and is usually created automatically by Quickbooks as soon as you tell the program you want to account for VAT.

“ZEU” and “ZX” are VAT codes set up to assist tracking with zero rated exports.  ZEU is recorded as an EC VAT code as a result of which sales will be treated accordingly in Quickbooks, e.g. if the VAT registration number of the customer is set up in the Quickbooks customer record, you can pull off an EC Sales List, and the net sales value is added into Box 8 (supplies of goods to other EC member states).  ZX is used to denote sales outside the EU.  These codes work as follows:

•	If, in Forest, Customer is set to “Charge VAT = False” and the Forest invoice sale type is EXPORT EU then the Quickbooks VAT Code will be set to ZEU when the transaction is imported.

•	If, in Forest, Customer is set to “Charge VAT = False” and the Forest invoice sale type is EXPORT then the Quickbooks VAT Code will be set to ZX when the transaction is imported.

In all other cases the VAT coding will follow the standard Quickbooks defaults – “S” for standard (17.5%) “Z” for zero (0%).

Internal Transfers

You may have internal departments set up as 'Customers' in Forest, in order to transfer stock to/from these departments and thus maintain stock control within, say, your main workshop stores. When exporting the data from Forest, any 'invoice' prepared for an internal department will result in an 'invoice' line being imported to QuickBooks  which has the description 'used for internal transfer' but values are all set to zero.  This is simply so that the number sequence is maintained within QuickBooks so that you have a visible check to confirm that that all invoice numbers are accounted for.  Please make sure that for all internal departments, the Forest settings for the TERMS field in the CUSTOMER record are set to INTERNAL, (and Charge VAT = False). Otherwise the 'customer' will be treated as any other customer and sales etc values imported into QuickBooks which are not true sales values.

Exports

If you Export from the UK, you need to be aware of and follow the following rules in order to comply with VAT law and to be able to track the VAT aspects of exports using QuickBooks.  This is not a complete treatment on VAT law, but should point you in the right direction.  If unsure, ask your professional adviser or the local VAT office.

1 	Sales to a point outside the EU are not vatable.  Strictly speaking they are outside the scope of VAT. These sales are vat coded to ZX in the export file from Forest and will appear under that code in QuickBooks.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = False, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export”.

2	Sales to a VAT registered business inside the EU, but outside of UK, can be zero rated if you a) hold evidence that the business is a VAT registered business  - so get the (foreign) VAT number, and b) you show that VAT number on the sales invoice, so put the VAT number in as part of the address (e.g. the last line).  These sales are vat coded to ZEU in the export file which registers them as European Exports in QuickBooks.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = False, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export EU”.

3	Sales to any other customers in the EU – you must charge VAT at the rate applicable to the supply (usually standard but manuals for example may be zero rated).  These sales are vat coded to S (or Z) in the export file which simply treats them as standard sales in QuickBooks.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = True, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export EU”.

Quickbooks Quickstart

To make life as easy as possible we have supplied startup files for you to import directly into Quickbooks which will set up your accounts structure for you.  The result will be a company file which has the most common Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet Accounts, together with VAT codes and Items which will allow you to immediately start running your business. You will almost certainly want or need to fine tune this basic set up to your own business requirements, probably in conjunction with your accountant.

If starting completely from scratch with Quickbooks follow these steps:

1	Start Quickbooks, then select File; New Company

2	Click on Next on the first 2 Welcome screens

3	Click on Skip Interview

4	Fill in all the details on the Create New Company screen (name address etc) and then click on 	Next

5	In the next Creating New Company screen, make sure that “(No Type)” is highlighted in the left 	hand list, and “(No Accounts)” appears in the right hand list as follows.

then click on Next

1	Save the new data file using an appropriate name and location

2	Click on No to close the 'Industry Specific Documentation' dialogue box.

You now have a company file which is empty but ready for use.

3	Go to File menu, select Utilities and then Import

4	In the resulting Import dialogue box, find and click on ForestQBNewCOA.iif, (by default 	this will be located in C:\Programs\Forest\Stock\) then click 'Open' to import the file.  This will 	set up all the accounts VAT codes and Items that you need in order to start operating 	Quickbooks.

then click on Next

Existing Quickbooks Users

If you are using any of the tested version of Quickbooks you can import a file which will add in just the accounts necessary to run this export/import routine.

This file is called ForestQBAddinCOA.iif (by default is located in C:\Programs\Forest\Stock\ ).  The file contains just the Accounts, VAT codes and Items used in the transaction imports.

To import this file, start Quickbooks and ensure the appropriate Company File is open.  Select File: Utilities: Import: and using the resulting dialogue box, find and point to the file ForestQBAddinCOA.iif.

If you are an existing Quickbooks user and you already have most or all of the required accounts set up, but with different names, you may prefer to change the names of your Quickbooks accounts to match the Forest defaults, or you can change the Forest default names to match your Quickbooks account names.  In either event you will need all of the above accounts within Quickbooks, and they must be the correct account type.

To manually adjust the default settings within Forest, go to Settings; Company Detail and Program Settings and select the fourth tab titled Account Settings.  Select Quickbooks in the Account Program drop down list box, and then type into the relevant User Definable Import Field your preferred account name.

Be aware that if the accounts are not set up correctly, or if the name in Forest does not match the exact Quickbooks name, then Quickbooks will create an account of type BANK to receive the data.  Very annoying if it's supposed to be sales! If you are unlucky enough to have this happen, delete all the imported transactions, delete the unwanted account(s), correct your chart of accounts and the matching User Definable Import Field entry in Forest, then export the batch again and import into Quickbooks.

Export from Forest

To export from Forest, first make sure all setting up has been completed as above and that the User Definable Import Field names in Forest exactly match the Account Names in QuickBooks, and that Quickbooks is selected as your accounts program.

Then create an invoice batch exactly as previously:  Reports: Accounts: Batch up daily invoices for Bookkeeping.

Choose from the report options:  Hardcopy, Export or Both (recommended).

Choose to create a new batch or report on a previous batch (enter the appropriate batch no).

Click the appropriate OK button.

As well as the hardcopy report (if requested) a file will be created, named ForestBatchnn.iif where nn is the batch number.  Using usual Windows file conventions, save this file to an appropriate location. (Defaults to folder C:\Programs\Forest\Stock\Data\Reports\ . You may prefer to store this file in the Quickbooks folder since it will be more readily visible when you select import from within Quickbooks, and Forest will remember the location for next time)

Import to Quickbooks

Start Quickbooks; make sure the appropriate company file is open.

Always do a backup of your data before you import !!

Please note that Quickbooks cannot accept a customer from Forest with the same name as an existing vendor within Quickbooks therefore it is IMPORTANT to ensure that when setting your vendor details in Quickbooks to avoid any names that exist in your customer database within Forest. A simple convention is to ensure that customers in Forest have the full title i.e 'Forest Landrovers' and vendors within Quickbooks have a slightly abreviated format i.e 'Forest LRS'.

Import the file (ForestBatch[No].iif) using File: Utilities: Import and then point to the batch file to be imported.  If you keep all exported files, then be careful to point to the correct file when importing.  When typing invoices in by hand it is entirely possible to miss one out, and it is equally possible to type the same one in twice.  Similarly it is possible to miss out an import file (if interrupted for example, during the procedure). It is possible to import the same file twice; however Quickbooks does warn you that a transaction number has been used before if this happens, similar to:

Click on No to cancel the import and then carefully check your batch numbers.

We recommend that you mark each hardcopy as you import its related batch file.

Another check you can do is to keep an eye on the invoice number sequence in Quickbooks.  If there are big gaps, or duplications, check to see if you have omitted or doubled a batch!  Duplications are a pain – each invoice or deposit transaction will need to be deleted manually from Quickbooks. Omissions are easier to rectify – import the batch if the file still exists, or re-export using Repeat Old Batch number as above and then import.

Should the import fail you will be given an error message containing the line number where the error occured.

It is suggested that you restore your recent backup then correct the error in the file manually before repeating the exercise.

To correct the error open the import file (ForestBatch[No].iif) in another program e.g. Notepad, Wordpad, Excel and count the lines to the error line to make your correction. Possible causes of import failure include duplicate names between Forest customers and Quickbook vendors and rounding errors.

Bookkeeping Guide Notes:

Invoices (or Credits) given “ACCOUNT” terms in Forest will be imported to Accounts Receivable and appear in reports as transaction type 'Invoice' (or Credit Memo).  When customer pays, allocate the funds received against specific invoices paid using the “Receive Payments” function in Quickbooks.  Remember to choose the bank (or cash) account as applicable.

Invoices (or Credits) given “CASH” terms in Forest will be imported to one of two accounts according to the selected payment method.  Cheque or Money sale will be imported to “Cash Account” while Credit or Debit Card sales will be imported to “Card Account”.  “Cash account” is the common term in bookkeeping for money received, although it is a slightly misleading term since it applies both to paper (cheques PO's etc) and genuine cash (coin and notes).  All invoices imported with CASH terms will be marked as paid in Quickbooks, so no funds will be required to be allocated against these invoices.  They appear in reports as transaction type 'Cash Sales' for invoice type transactions and 'Cheques' for credit type transactions.

The Cash Account and Card Accounts should be considered as temporary locations where funds reside.

Think of the Cash Account as the cash tin or till in the office.  When the money comes in from outside the business (cash, cheques, postal orders etc), it is placed in the tin.  When there is time, someone partly or fully empties the tin and takes the contents to the bank.  The bookkeeping, which follows exactly that process, is that the gross total invoice amounts, (which are actually amounts of money received), are deposited into the Cash Account (the cash tin), then, when a banking is done record a transfer (use the Banking & Credit Cards / Transfer Money function) from Cash Account to the Bank Account where you bank the money.  At any given time, the balance on the Cash Account should be the sum of the cash and cheques that you have not yet banked.

Similarly, think of the “Card Account” as representing the card processing agent that you use (e.g. Barclays Merchant Services).  When the invoice is paid, the money goes from the customer to the card processing agent and then is credited to your bank account.  In your business, when you process the payment on your credit card terminal, you consider the invoice paid.  Actually, you still have to wait for the card processing agent to pay you.  The bookkeeping is therefore that the invoice amounts are 'deposited' into the Card Account.  Then when you receive money from the card processing agent, record a transfer (use the Banking & Credit Cards / Transfer Money function) from Card Account to the Bank Account where you receive the money.  At any given time, the balance on the Card Account should be the sum of the card transactions for which you have not yet been re-imbursed by your card processor.

NOTE the above assumes that cards are processed electronically (swipe machine, PDQ terminal etc), with direct credit to your bank account after a delay period (typically 3 to 5 banking days).  If instead you use a manual card machine and take the paper slips to your bank, process a transfer equal to the paper slips banked.

Accounts Support

(as opposed to program/data support)

This routine and the accounting structure has been developed by Forest Software in conjunction with a Chartered Accountant who specialises in independent business tax and accounts and is highly experienced with Quickbooks in real life environments.  Should you require assistance with, or supply of, Quickbooks, please contact:

Nigel K Wayne FCA,

AIMS* Accountants for Business,

Tel: 01409 221473 Fax: 01409 220032 E-Mail nigel@nkwayne.co.uk

*AIMS is a national association of independent accounting practices operating under licence granted by AIMS Partnership plc


Batch routines

Batch routines

The purpose of the account batch is to consolidate your sales invoices at regular periods into manageable batches which will suit two distinctly different aspects of managing your buiness.

Accounts reports

Each batch report will enable you to enter the data into your accounts program and build up your accounts records in manner which is acceptable to the VAT inspector. Each transaction is listed and should the inspector wish to look at the detail of an invoice or run off a copy then your history file will accomodate it. Each batch report should be filed and will form a sales day book which is acceptable to the inspector. You should read our accountancy advice notes.

Should you wish to import your batch report into your accounts program please study the guidlines provided

Business management

Before running a batch it is recommended that you take various steps to ensure your batch is accurate before processing to accounts...

1. Open your history file and click on 'PAID BY' on the title bar of the grid. This will sort your unbatched invoices into the 'Paid by' order.

2. Check in turn that you have the supporting documentation for each payment catagory. Each cheque sale should have a cheque (or have been banked as a cheque), each card sale should have a voucher etc. Toggle any which have been processed incorrectly.

3. If using Quickbooks check that there is not going to be an import rejection because of a Customer's name in Forest being exactly the same as a Vendor's name in Quickbooks

4. Run the batch report and even if you export/import your data it is recommended that you retain a hard copy.

5. From the hard copy check that your cash sales balance with the cash in your till.

6. If you have profit control turned on then your batch report will contain a listing of all invoices and the margin achieved on each. It is recommended that this list be studied and any invoice where the margin is low is opened up in history and the reasons for the low margin investigated to avoid repetition.


Sage Line 50

Forest Export to Sage Line 50

Versions currently tested are 5.02

Introduction

Customer details and Invoice Transactions can be transferred from Forest to Sage Line 50 by exporting the data into 2 files which can be imported straight in Sage.  One file contains the latest name address phone and contact details for each customer for whom an invoice is included, the second file contains the invoice data.  Using this facility saves re-keying information into Sage and therefore saves time and improves accuracy.

The limitation of the Sage import option is that each transaction line imported is represented by one entry in, for example, Accounts Receivable.  Your customers do not expect to receive a statement showing each individual line of an invoice separately on the statement as if it were a separate invoice, therefore Forest exports 1 line only for each invoice.

The operation of this facility is linked to the Batch Processing of invoices within Forest.  Whenever a batch report is produced for accounts, there is the option to produce that report solely on paper, solely as a file for import to Sage, or both.  We recommend both.

Wealth Warning

Every effort has been made to ensure that this export/import routine and its associated settings will improve and enhance the efficiency of your accounting practices.  However, all businesses differ in their requirements and you should therefore liaise with your accountant or other professional adviser and ensure that the settings and accounting structure you want to use match your commercial business accounting and taxation requirements.  It will be irritating and expensive if you leave it until the end of your accounts year and find that half the savings you have made using this routine are spent on accountants re-analysing your sales!

Setting Up

You will need Sage Line 50 or better.  Lower versions of Sage (e.g. Instant Accounting) do not have the import facility.  This routine has been tested with version 5.02

In order to set up Sage for use with this facility you will need to ensure that there are accounts available in Sage to receive the data exported from Forest.  Then Forest needs to know the account numbers of those accounts.

The easiest way to accomplish this is to use the standard accounts we have set up as default Sage accounts within Forest.  The following table shows the default Sage settings in Forest:

Forest Transaction	User Definable Import Field
Net Value of Sales	4060
VAT Code Exports	T0
VAT Code EU Exports	T4
Sale paid by CASH (money)	1230
Sale paid by CHEQUE	1230
Sale paid by DEBIT CARD	1250
Sale paid by CREDIT CARD	1250

In our test system the following settings were used:

4060 	Sales must be an account of type “Sales” and will receive the net value of all invoices raised.

1230 “Cash Account” and 1250 “Credit Card Receipts Account” must be accounts of type “Bank Account” and will receive the value of invoices paid by cash cheque credit card or debit card (see bookkeeping guide notes below).

The two VAT Accounts (Purchase Tax Control and Sales Tax Control) should also be present in the Sage chart of accounts and are usually created automatically by Sage as soon as you tell the program you want to account for VAT.

T4 is usually the VAT code set up to assist tracking with exports to Europe.  The VAT codes translate from Forest as follows:

•	If, in Forest, Customer is set to “Charge VAT = False” and the Forest invoice sale type is EXPORT EU then the Sage VAT Code will be set to T4 when the transaction is imported.

•	If, in Forest, Customer is set to “Charge VAT = False” and the Forest invoice sale type is EXPORT then the Sage VAT Code will be set to T0 when the transaction is imported.

•	In all other cases the VAT coding will be coded T0 if there is no VAT on the invoice, T1 otherwise. (NB one of the limitations of Sage does mean that in the case of a mixed invoice, e.g. service repairs and MOT, the value of VAT allocated to T1 may not equal 17.5% of the sales value).

Departments

If you use the departments within Forest, these will transfer to Sage as follows:

Forest 'Computer Location'	Sage Department Number
General	0
Parts	1
Mail Order	2
Sales	3
Workshop	4

Thus you can draw down reports from Sage by Department, should you need or want to do this for management purposes by making sure that your invoices are set to the correct department in Forest at the point of preparation.

Internal Transfers

You may have internal departments set up as 'Customers' in Forest, in order to transfer stock to/from these departments and thus maintain stock control within, say, your main workshop stores. When exporting the data from Forest, any 'invoice' prepared for an internal department will result in an 'invoice' line being imported to Sage which has the description 'used for internal transfer' but values are all set to zero.  This is simply so that the number sequence is maintained within Sage so that you have a visible check to confirm that that all invoice numbers are accounted for.  Please make sure that for all internal departments, the Forest settings for the TERMS field in the CUSTOMER record are set to INTERNAL, (and Charge VAT = False). Otherwise the 'customer' will be treated as any other customer and sales etc values imported into Sage which are not true sales values.

Exports

If you Export from the UK, you need to be aware of and follow the following rules in order to comply with VAT law and to be able to track the VAT aspects of exports using Sage.  This is not a complete treatment on VAT law, but should point you in the right direction.  If unsure, ask your professional adviser or the local VAT office.

1. Sales to a point outside the EU are not vatable.  Strictly speaking they are outside the scope of VAT. These sales are vat coded to T0 in the export file from Forest and will appear under that code in Sage.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = False, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export”.

2. Sales to a VAT registered business inside the EU, but outside of UK, can be zero rated if you a) hold evidence that the business is a VAT registered business  - so get the (foreign) VAT number, and b) you show that VAT number on the sales invoice, so put the VAT number in as part of the address (e.g. the last line).  These sales are vat coded to T4 in the export file which registers them as European Exports in Sage.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = False, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export EU”.

3. Sales to any other customers in the EU – you must charge VAT at the rate applicable to the supply (usually standard but manuals for example may be zero rated).  These sales are vat coded to T1 in the export file which simply treats them as standard sales in Sage.

You need to make the following settings – in Customer record Charge VAT = True, on each invoice, set the Sale Type to “Export EU”.

New Sage Users

In conjunction with your accounting advisers, set up Sage Line 50 appropriate to your business and commercial requirements, making sure that the accounts mentioned above are all correctly numbered and of the right account type.

In Forest, go to Settings; Company Detail and Program Settings and select the fourth tab titled Account Settings.  Select Sage in the Account Program drop down list box, and check the settings in the relevant User Definable Import Field match the settings within Sage.

Existing Sage Users

If you are an existing Sage user and you already have most or all of the required accounts set up, but with different numbers, you can change the Forest default account numbers to match your Sage account numbers.  In any event you will need all of the above accounts within Sage, and they must be the correct account type.

To manually adjust the default settings within Forest, go to Settings; Company Detail and Program Settings and select the fourth tab titled Account Settings.  Select Sage in the Account Program drop down list box, and then type into the relevant User Definable Import Field your corresponding Sage account number.

Be aware that if the accounts are not set up correctly, or if the number in Forest does not match the exact Sage number, the import will either fail or, worse still, import transactions to the wrong account!

Matching Customer Accounts between Sage and Forest

When importing a transaction to Sage, it must be imported to the correct Customer's account.  The Account is identified within Sage by the account number – an (up to) 8 character reference number.  For Forest invoices to be posted to the correct Sage Customer account, the Sage Account Number has to be set up in each Forest Customer record.  When Sage is selected as the accounting program (Settings; Company Detail and Program Settings and select the fourth tab titled Account Settings.  Select Sage in the Account Program drop down list box) a field is added to each customers record to record the Sage account number.

If you are using Sage for the first time but with an existing Forest setup, then the creation of Sage Customer codes is simple.  Use the following routine to generate codes automatically for every customer within Forest:

Utilities; Manage Data; Customers – reset all account codes to system defaults.  This creates an 8 digit code based on the first 5 characters of the customers name followed by 3 digits to allow up to 999 versions of people with the same first 5 characters (e.g. SMITH001, SMITH002 etc).  IMPORTANT NOTE don't use this routine after the first export from Forest into Sage has been completed.  If the routine creates a new account code for any customer, then a new account will be created in Sage to match the new number and your customer's details will be split across more than one account.

If you are an existing Sage user, you will need to manually enter your existing Sage Customer Account number in the appropriate field in each customer account in Forest.

In order to reduce the amount of work involved with setting up Sage Customer Account numbers, a facility has been built in Forest which allows the removal of old customers.  It is recommended that you create a permanent back up of your data before using this routine since it cannot be reversed.  Go to menu selection as follows:

Utilities; Manage Data; Customers – clear out INACTIVE details; then choose the length of time since last sale appropriate to your requirements (18, 24 or 36 months).  All customers without a sale in the appropriate time frame will be removed from Forest leaving just active customers.

Many reports can be generated from within Sage which will provide the required information.  On completion, Reports; Accounts; Export Customer Account Codes to csv file will generate a text file which can be opened with a spreadsheet or word processing program so that full comparison can be made against the Sage Report in order to check and confirm accuracy.

Export from Forest

To export from Forest, first make sure all setting up has been completed as above and that the User Definable Import Field numbers in Forest exactly match the Account Numbers in Sage, and that Sage is selected as your accounts program.

Then create an invoice batch exactly as previously:  Reports: Accounts: Batch up daily invoices for Bookkeeping.

Choose from the report options:  Hardcopy, Export or Both (Both is recommended).

Choose to create a new batch or report on a previous batch (enter the appropriate batch no if you wish to recreate a previous batch).

Click the appropriate OK button.

As well as the hardcopy report (if requested) 2 files will be created, named FSCUSnn.csv and FSTRNnn.csv where nn is the batch number.  Using usual Windows file conventions, save these files to an appropriate location. (Defaults to folder C:\Programs\Forest\Stock\Data\Reports\ ).

FSCUSnn.csv contains the current details of each customer for which there is an invoice in the batch.  FSTRNnn.csv contains the details of each invoice in the batch.

Import into Sage

If the transaction file contains a customer which is not set up in Sage, the import will fail since transactions can only be imported to existing customer accounts.  IN case there is a new customer in the batch, it is therefore always necessary to import the customer file first, followed by the transaction file.

Start Sage; make sure the appropriate company file is open and that there are no windows open within Sage.

Import the files using File: Import and then point to the batch files to be imported.  For example, to import the files exported from Forest for batch 47:

Select File; Import; then make sure that Customer Records is selected in the File Import window:

Click on Run, then using the file selection dialogue box presented, point to FSCUS47.csv. Click on OK to run the import.  A File Import Success window will then list the customers imported.  Click on Close.

Now change the import type to Transactions:

Click on Run, then using the file selection dialogue box presented, point to FSTRN47.csv. Click on OK to run the import.  A File Import Success window will then list the transactions imported.  Click on Close.

In the event that either of the imports fails a window will be displayed showing the lines on which and giving a reason why the import failed.  The csv files are purely text files and can be opened using a spreadsheet or word processing program.  Correct the error, save the file and re-import.  When saving, make sure you save as a type csv file, not a spreadsheet or word processing file since these are full of formatting and other codes which Sage cannot read.  Alternatively if the problem be within Sage, rather than the csv file, make the required change and re-import.

The most common error of all in testing was invalid account numbers.  This is unlikely to occur in any import other than the first and generally applies if for example you have told Forest that the bank account is number 1201, whereas in Sage it is actually 1200 and 1201 does not exist.  Similarly you may get invalid Sales Ledger Account which probably means there is a new customer and you have imported the transaction file before the customer file.

If you keep all exported files, then be careful to point to the correct file when importing.  When typing invoices in by hand it is entirely possible to miss one out, and it is equally possible to type the same one in twice.  Similarly it is possible to miss out an import file (if interrupted for example, during the procedure). It is possible to import the same file twice and Sage does NOT warn against duplicate sales invoice numbers.

We recommend that you mark each hardcopy as you import its related batch file.

Another check you can do is to keep an eye on the invoice number sequence in Sage.  If there are gaps, or duplications, check to see if you have omitted or doubled a batch!  Duplications are a pain – each invoice or deposit transaction will need to be deleted manually from Sage. Omissions are easier to rectify – import the batch if the file still exists, or re-export using Repeat Old Batch number as above and then import.

Bookkeeping Guide Notes

Invoices (or Credits) given “ACCOUNT” terms in Forest will be imported to Customers and appear in reports as transaction type 'SI' for invoice or 'SC' for credit notes.  When customer pays, allocate the funds received against specific invoices paid using the “Bank; Customer” function in Sage.  Remember to choose the bank (or cash) account as applicable before clicking on the Customer button.

Invoices (or Credits) given “CASH” terms in Forest will be imported to one of two accounts according to the selected payment method.  Cheque or Money sale will be imported to “Cash Account” while Credit or Debit Card sales will be imported to “Card Account”.  “Cash account” is the common term in bookkeeping for money received, although it is a slightly misleading term since it applies both to paper (cheques PO's etc) and genuine cash (coin and notes).  All invoices imported with CASH terms are treated as paid in Sage, so no funds will be required to be allocated against these invoices.  They appear in reports as transaction type 'CR' for Cash & Cheque invoice type transactions 'VR' for credit & debit card invoice type transactions ('CP' and 'VP' respectively for refunds).

The Cash Account and Card Accounts should be considered as temporary locations where funds reside until otherwise dealt with.

Think of the Cash Account as the cash tin or till in the office.  When the money comes in from outside the business (cash, cheques, postal orders etc), it is placed in the tin.  When there is time, someone partly or fully empties the tin and takes the contents to the bank.  The bookkeeping, which follows exactly that process, is that the gross total invoice amounts, (which are actually amounts of money received), are deposited into the Cash Account (the cash tin), then, when a banking is done record a transfer (use the Bank; Transfer function) from Cash Account to the Bank Account where you bank the money.  At any given time, the balance on the Cash Account should be the sum of the cash and cheques that you have not yet banked.

Similarly, think of the “Card Account” as representing the card processing agent that you use (e.g. Barclays Merchant Services).  When the invoice is paid, the money goes from the customer to the card processing agent and then is credited to your bank account.  In your business, when you process the payment on your credit card terminal, you consider the invoice paid.  Actually, you still have to wait for the card processing agent to pay you.  The bookkeeping is therefore that the invoice amounts are 'deposited' into the Card Account.  Then when you receive money from the card processing agent, record a transfer (use the Bank; Transfer function) from Card Account to the Bank Account where you receive the money.  At any given time, the balance on the Card Account should be the sum of the card transactions for which you have not yet been re-imbursed by your card processor.

NOTE the above assumes that cards are processed electronically (swipe machine, PDQ terminal etc), with direct credit to your bank account after a delay period (typically 3 to 5 banking days).  If instead you use a manual card machine and take the paper slips to your bank, process a transfer equal to the paper slips banked.

Accounts Support

(as opposed to program/data support)

This routine and the accounting structure has been developed by Forest Software in conjunction with a Chartered Accountant who specialises in independent business tax and accounts and is highly experienced with Quickbooks in real life environments.  Should you require assistance with, or supply of, Sage, please contact:

Nigel K Wayne FCA,

AIMS* Accountants for Business,

Tel: 01409 221473 Fax: 01409 220032 E-Mail nigel@nkwayne.co.uk

*AIMS is a national association of independent accounting practices operating under licence granted by AIMS Partnership plc


Stock values
Basic stockholding report

 A simple report which all the values of your stock in hand. When used in conjunction with a picking list every time goods are issued a check can be made of remaining stock thus ensuring the accuracy of this report.

High Value Stock Holdings

You may select the values to limit the range of the report which will show you all parts in stock where your value of that part is greater than the selected limit. (Number in stock * Cost Price). This is useful to cut down on the value of your stock holdings.

Dead Stock

You may select the values to limit the range of the report which will show you all parts in stock that you have not sold in the chosen timescale. This is useful for making a list of special offers.


Stock lists

are available:

indexed by description

useful when trying to maintain a counter service if the computer is 'down'

indexed by part number

useful when receiving goods and storing away

indexed by location

you may choose all locations or select specific locations for random stock taking


Reminder


Set reminder

You can set a reminder from invoices or from history if reminders is switched on in program settings

Having set your reminders you can manage them by selecting Reports - Reminders


Report, labour

Access to this location is password protected


Settings, backup

We cannot over emphasize how important it is to maintain regular backups of your data. Having elected to maintain your data on computer it is vital that you retain several copies.

We recommend that you have one separate zip disk for each day of operation. With automatic backup set (default) when you start your program it will create a copy of your data in a '\logon\' folder and when you close the program it will take another copy and place it in a '\logoff\' folder. This way there is no overwriting of good data by bad data. You may choose the location by typing in the box

If you select to "Save data to HDD"  from the Utilities option a copy of data will be saved in C:\Backup in a pre dated folder. Occasionally you should delete old files from this location.

You may also save across the network by typing the the appropriate path.

You may also set each workstation to automatically backup up to it's own HDD every time it logs on which creates a full version of the data at that time on a seperate HDD.

The program automatically makes a text copy of you open invoice files the first time the data is accessed each day and 10 days copies are automatically retained. Similarly with log files, when the log file is emptied, copies are retained for 60 days.


Settings, computer function
You may designate the location of your computer in the following categories to limit which open invoices are on your screen.

General, sees all invoices

Parts Counter

Sales

Mail Order

Workshop

Internet

A parts invoice may be created on a workshop computer and visa versa by changing the setting when an invoice is open.

These categories are used when printing an Account Report


Settings, company and program

Your company name and vat number can only be changed by arrangement with ourselves, however your address and contact details may be changed at any time. Program options are switched on or off here too.


Program Options


Adjusting selling prices

Adjusting Selling prices

UTILITIES / MANAGE DATA / PRICES - Make GLOBAL adjusments to selling prices


Settings, discount codes

Main agents usually issue a discount matrix of the discounts you can expect when buying genuine parts. Insert your personal discounts here and the main agents' net price will be displayed in Orders and Parts


Settings, employees

Maintain basic employee details if tracking labour is switched on in program settings


Settings, password

You may reset your password at any time. If you loose your password our support can recover it for you


Settings, printer


Settings, printing

The purpose of this file is to allow you to vary various parts of the printing routines.

DO NOT edit the items between the brackets [......]

To get you started we recommend the following

[GLOBAL]

Headfont1=Arial

Headfont2=Arial

Headfont3=Arial

Bodyfont=Arial

Termsfont=Arial Italic

[INVOICE]

TermsFonSize=8

Below is a text memo field which contains groups of variables to change various printing

attributes of each printout. These groups of variables are defined by the start header for the

printout that that group of variables are declared. The header MUST be enclosed in square

brackets and the first bracket located in column 1 of the text field. ie

[Invoice]

The following list is the Headers that are currently acceptable..

[Global]

[Motletter]

[Order]

[Account]

[Pricelist]

[Invoice]

[Order]

[Quote]

[Pickinglist]

[StockCheck]

Under each of these headings one or more of the following variables, not necessarily all of

them, will have an effect on the resulting printout. Entries after the Header must start at column

1 and are separated by an equal sign to the variable .. ie

Headfontsize1=15

Currently the following variables are acceptable:-

HEADFONT1       {Company Name on headings}

HEADFONTSIZE1

HEADFONT2       {Company details such as address and phone num}

HEADFONTSIZE2

HEADFONT3       {Customer/supplier address on invoice and orders}

HEADFONTSIZE3

BODYFONT        {Any general main body text}

BODYFONTSIZE

TERMSFONT       {Terms and conditions on invoice}

TERMSFONTSIZE

TERMSCALE       {A Tweeker to correct the printing size of T&C}

INHLHSMARGIN    {Inch left hand side margin (integer 10ths of inch)}

INHRHSMARGIN    {Inch Right hand side margin (integer 10ths of inch)}

INHTOPMARGIN    {Inch Top Margin (integer 10ths of inch)}

INHBOTMARGIN    {Inch Bottom Margin (integer 10th of inch)}

INHLINESPACE    {Inch Line space (integer 100ths of inch)}

INHTABPOS       {Inch Tab Position - Tab position of the supplier/customer address on orders

& Invoices}

The following are only available to some printouts. This is done on purpose because of the

lack of room for error!

[INVOICE] & [QUOTE]

PRINTLISTPRICE {on or off}

PRINTPARTNUMBER {on or off}

INHTAB1 {Tab Position (integer 10ths of inch)}

INHTAB2

INHTAB3

INHTAB4

INHTAB5

INHTAB6

HEADPRINT {This stops printing of header information.. allows for pre-printed stationary}

An example of a valid entry in this filei:-

[Invoice]

HeadFont1=System

Headfontsize1=12

[Order]

Headprint=no

Bodyfontsize=8

[Account]

Bodyfontsize=10

HeadFont1=System

Headfontsize1=15

Note...

Entries are NOT Case sensitive, but if the programe does not exactly recognize the variable

it will be ignored.

Plenty of scope for producing lots more scrap paper!!


Settings, manual stock adjustment

This will restrict the manual editting of Stock in Hand, Retail Price and Trade price in the parts record.


Settings, terms

This allows for a section at the bottom of the invoice or the quotation to contain text. There may be a legal requirement to provide certain information here e.g Proprietor


Settings, vat

If rates change amend here


Profit Control

Profit Control is computer specific. To activate this facility you will be asked to supply a password. Having activated it please visit Company and Program settings in order to set the required gross profit level required on each invoice.

When in invoices a new option will appear on the menu bar called 'Profit' which will display in the Ship To box the amount of profit on this invoice. The information is timed to disappear again after 2.5 seconds or may be closed manually.

Also if this option is set the operator will be warned if any item with a selling price does not have an associated cost price and also if the combined profit on the invoice is below the required margin.The operator is given the warning then asked if he wishes to continue or not.


Log Files

The program contains the facility to maintain a log file of actions taken with the computer. When that file becomes too large you will be invited to delete it or save it.

The menu item UTILITIES >> ACTIVITY LOG FILE can be found in the main menu of the Open Invoice Screen.


Group labour

When this option is selected in Program Settings and tracking labour is switched on all labour items on an invoice will be group under one item at the end of the invoice. This enables partial jobs to be allocated various amounts of labour which are then 'totalled'.


Parts


Part search

The search is activated when you hit the [enter] key. There will be a series of messages to guide you through the process. Take care not to add parts to stock that you do not need to have there since the larger your stock records the longer the search.


Wild search

Will list all parts where the description contains the search criteria. You must then accept the required part to return to the normal part search options.


Sell a part

If there's an invoice open this will add the required number to that invoice or if this area has been accessed from a parts enquiry with no invoice open it will create a new one.


Search options

You may choose whether to search on part number or description on each machine by selecting search options from the menu.


Stock Type

Designate a record as being

Stock

for items that you wish to monitor the numbers of for orders etc

Non Stock

for items where there are no physical quantities such as wheel balancing, stem cleaning etc

Labour (only available when labour analysis is switched on in program settings)

for labour categories


Superseed
Superseded

You may add a new number or link an earlier number


Source

There is no limit to the number of sources of a part that you may have however the chosen supplier must first exist in your supplier records.


Licences

All versions of Forest Software operate on a system of  concurrent licencing - that is to say you may install the software on as many computers at yoiur premises as you wish but it will only run on the number of machines that you have licences for at any one time.

As each computer opens the software it marks a licence as "IN USE" and when it closes down properly it frees that licence.

Should a computer close down improperly then it will not free it's licence which can leave a false number of licences recorded as being in use. The way to avoid this happening is to close down properly however accidents can and will happen therefore there is a facility within the UTILS folder called RESET.EXE. Close Forest on all computers then run this utility to zero the number of licences recorded as "IN USE"


Change a source

By clicking on a new source you will change the stock record as follows:

If the chosen part number is the same then the chosen suppliers price will be placed in the the cost price box and the name in the new supplier box unless it is the main agent that has been chosen in which case the retail price will be set to RRP, the cost will be set to the cost and the trade price will be set at one third of the available margin off retail thus giving a margin of two thirds to you.

If you have chosen a different part number then the part number will be changed and the old number will be shown when next searching for this part.


Variations

This will remove the last character from the part number and search for all references to the remaining string of characters i.e. if your part number is ERR3340G then subject to the data being on your system you will see the following


One off orders

Enter an amount here to create a one off order for items that you wish to order once only.

If you utilise this from an invoice then a note will be placed on the invoice to remind you when you created a one off order, the part number and the quantity required for this invoice. This note can be manually removed once the goods have been received.

When receiving goods inwards you will automatically be directed towards the invoice associated with the one off order.


Orders

For an explanation of how orders are calculated click here


Order values

This is the value of items NOT marked as already ordered. As you mark items on order this value drops showing the remaining value. Use to establish if you can have enough items left to be carriage free.


Sources

Shows alternative sources based on the part number. Double click on the supplier you wish to change to and after confirmation the order values will change.


Order details

This is the items required from this supplier. Move items between suppliers by double clicking in the Sources box. Mark items as ordered with the [enter] key. Increase or decrease the number required with either the '+' or '-' keys or by clicking on the arrows.

Any recalculation of the order e.g. by further sales will recalculate the order and remove the date ordered.


Order Options

Rebuild Orders

This will 'freshen' you existing order files to ensure that you order listings are up to date. Existing orders and existing 'one offs' will remain unaffected.


Missing prices

If all prices are missing then you have not established a source for this part number. Click on edit part and add a source.

If the names are there but the prices missing then the prices have been omitted since they are older than 10 months and cannot therefore be relied upon to be a valid comparison. You may obtain a supplier's update disk through your support contract or you may edit each part in the price list to refresh the date for another 10 months of validity.


History

The yellow column indicates the index which can be changed by clicking on the title bar


Change historic invoice

You may change the Mileage and Ref fields at any time and toggle the payment and type fields until the invoice has been 'batched'.


Customers


Customer Terms

Retail, Trade, and Cost are all levels of prices which are set for each individual part in the part's record form. Each can be modified by a chosen percentage in the +/- box. A minus percentage cannot be applied to a customer whose terms are set to cost.

Each setting defaults logically. If you nhave a Retail customer less 50% and the calculated price is less than Trade price then it will default to Trade price. Similarly if Trade + 50% takes the customers price over Retail then he will be charged Retail.

The next box is the percentage to apply to the chosen terms. Charge vat should be set to false if you export to a customer and never wish to add vat to his invoice.


Customer notes

Make notes appertaining to each customer. If turned on in program settings notes will automatically appear when you select a customers name in the invoice


Credit card expiry
Credit card expiry and from

Enter in the format mm/yy

that's 03/20


Export Names & Addresses

Firstly you will be asked for a password.

This function will export to a CSV (comma seperated value) file called CUSTOMER .TXT which will be located in the data directory.

When the procedure has finished you will be asked if you would like to view it. If you do, it will open in either Notepad or Wordpad depending on size and can be saved to a location of your choice from here.

Printing of address labels to standard label format is also available here


Labels

AVERY LABELS

are available from most stationers with the following product codes

(info from Avery, please check before purchase)

Avery Ink Jet Products are specifically designed for use in ink jet printers.

The products listed below are available in Europe and other parts of the world. In addition to these products, many Avery laser products work fine in ink jet printers.

White Ink Jet Labels

Are ideal for all addressing and shipping applications. Available in 6 sizes, the professional-looking labels are compatible with ink jet printers.

Product Code	Size in mm	Labels 	Sheets	Supported

per sheet	per pack

J8160M White	63,5 x 38,1	21	40	Yes

J8161M White	63,5 x 46,6	18	40

J8162M White	99,1 x 33,9	16	40

J8163M White	99,1 x 38,1	14	40	Yes

J8165M White	99,1 x 67,7	8	40

J8651 White	38,1 x 21,2	65	25

White Ink Jet Labels for Colour Ink Jet Printers

Are premium quality labels made of special paper for perfect results with colour ink jet printers.

Product Code	Size in mm	Labels 	Sheets	Supported

per sheet	per pack

J8360 White	63,5 x 38,1	21	25	Yes

J8362 White	99,1 x 33,9	16	25

J8363 White	99,1 x 38,1	14	25	Yes

J8365 White	99,1 x 67,7	8	25

Clear Ink Jet Labels

Designed to virtually disappear on white, patterned or colored envelopes, Clear Ink Jet Labels make mailings look more professional. Available in 4 sizes, they're ideal for addressing and shipping.

Product Code	Size in mm	Labels 	Sheets	Supported

per sheet	per pack

J8560 Clear	63,5 x 38,1	21	25	Yes

J8562 Clear	99,1 x 33,9	16	25

J8563 Clear	99,1 x 38,1	14	25	Yes

J8565 Clear	99,1 x 67,7	8	25


Suppliers


Amend supplier prices

Use the routine of [Part Number],[Enter],[Part Number],[Enter] to quickly amend prices from update lists.


Jobs

This screen operates very much the same as an invoice. You can build a job invoice by adding parts from stock although stock levels are not adjusted and writing on the invoice then add all items listed to the invoice in one go.


Invoice


Invoice sale type

You may select

General (default)

Export to EU

Export

This will allow your export sales to be summarized on your account report for VAT purposes


Invoice select customer

To change the customer from the default which is '#CASH SALE#' you can:

1. Tab from the grid to this box and begin typing

2. Tab from the grid to this box then hold ALT plus the down arrow to drop the selection.

3. Click on the arrow on the right of this box to drop the selection


Invoice change terms

You may change from 'CASH' to 'ACCOUNT'

You may change from 'RETAIL' to 'TRADE'

You may NOT change a default '#CASH SALE#' invoice. To change a default invoice to trade terms you must drop the selection grid and select '#TRADE SALE#'.

You may NOT change a customers terms if that customer is on 'COST' based terms


Invoice Issue
This is the point at which an open invoice becomes a VAT invoice. If the customer is on cash then you will be asked to select the method of payment...

but if on account then you will see...


Issue failed

The program can fail to issue an invoice if it finds that the invoice ID number already resides in the History file. This is a safety measure to prevent corruption within what is vital data i.e. your VAT records. The problem can only occur if a program has been improperly aborted and the result of that is that when a new invoice ID is issue it conflicts with one that already exists in History. The invoice ID is a unique identifier which the user does not see but the program relies upon to link the invoice header information to the invoice line information.

If this problem should occur then the open invoice has an incorrect ID and the invoice should be deleted. To aid this we suggest that you print a picking list, delete the offending invoice and then rebuild a new invoice from the information on the picking list. That way the new invoice will have a 'clean' and fresh ID which can be issued in the normal way.

You cannot 'loose' an invoice. Unless the open invoice is positively written to the History file it will not be removed from the Open Invoice list.


Invoice Switches

Adjust stock when adding or deleting items

This setting is reset to checked (true) every time an invoice opens. When unckecked it will not adjust your stock levels/orders when adding or deleting items from the menu. This makes it easy to create an invoice of items sent direct from your supplier to your customer and avoids the need to book the good in and then out again.

Convert this invoice into a template

Makes a Job out of this invoice which can later be added to the invoice

Show printer options

This will facilitate the prining of multiple invoices or printing to alternative printers/faxes

List price OFF when List price is greater than oup price

Avoids any embarrassment if a client happens to see the screen and you are selling for more than RRP.

Print method of payment on the invoice

You may switch this on or off. It is useful to keep this on since if you get a return then you can easily see how it was paid for.


Insert a line

To insert a line on an invoice or job template first select the line above which you want to insert a line then hit the INS key on your keyboard. This will enable the label at the bottom left of your screen which says 'Insert Line'. You may then 'ADD' a part or 'WRITE' on the invoice at the chosen location. This has to be done repeatedly to add more than one line.


Network

Network Configuration issues

Each workstation has both the program (Forest4.exe) and the BDE (Borland Database Engine) installed. The main computer (server) is where the data resides which is accessed by each workstation. In order to ensure that the data is handled in the same way by each workstation the configuration of each workstation needs to be identical. To this end we recommend that the BDE on each workstation be set to use the .CFG file that the server uses. This principal need only be compromised when there is a need to run another program on a workstation which is also governed by the BDE

The data is in paradox format which is quite capable of the task required of it without the costly licensing overhead of other client/server data systems.

There is only one instance of the data on the entire system which is why your backup system is critical.

Since each workstation refreshes itself with the latest data if there is an interuption to the supply of that data from the server then a series of error messages will cascade down the workstations screen until access to the data is restored and the workstation rebooted.

The program itself actually checks various machine settings to ensure that it is safe to operate on your system each time it loads. There are certain BDE settings which are neccessary to ensure data integrity when working with 'live data' as opposed to 'query data'. If your settings need to change when you load the program you will be asked for a re boot.

There is an update to Microsofts' network redirector for Win95. Our program will not run on your system if this latest file is not found. If you encounter this problem run the program vrdrupd.exe which can be found in our utils folder (c:\program files\forest\stock\utils)

To install Forest 4 Stock/Invoice/Order manager across a network please read these notes fully.

The recommended way to run the program on a workstation is to run it from a shortcut on the workstation which points to a batch file on the server. This batch file must do the following

1. Set the date and time of the workstation to match that of the server (to ensure that invoices being issued all have the same Time/Date).

2. Should check the server for a newer version of the program (and help file) on the server. If newer versions are found it is imperative that they be copied to the workstation before running it from the workstation. This ensures that all machines on the system are using the same version of software. Support contracts include free program updates and our update routines only update the server.

It is important to set the BDE on each workstation to be identical throughout the system. This can be achieved by either using the same IDAPI32.CFG file on the server or carefully mirroring each machines settings.

1. BASIC WINDOWS OS CONFIGURATION:

(right click on Network Neighbourhood, select properties)

Network protocols:

Netbuei (configured as default over TCP/IP - Win9* only)

TCP/IP

Windows keyboard language - English(British)

Windows Regional Settings - English(British)

Windows Regional Date, shortdate settings dd/mm/yyyy

Identification.

For  windows 95/98 the workgroup must be the exactly the same on all computers and it is case sensitive and you should not use spaces

Naming conventions should reflect the location e.g.

Server	master

Office2	office2

Counter1	counter1

Counter2	counter2

Workshop	workshop

3. NETWORK SHARES:

(in Explorer right click on the folder then select sharing)

The folders on the server should be allocated full rights.

c:\program files\forest\stock	stock

c:\program files\forest\stock\data	data

c:\program files\forest\stock\network	network

c:\program files\common files\borland shared\bde	bde

If security is not an issue then there is no harm in allocating full rights to the C:\ (root) drive as 'C'

4. BDE:

(find and run BDEAdmin.exe)

The location of the data is set using an alias called 'Forest4db' the path for which should be 	\\master\data

To manage record locking all workstations must use the same LOCK file so it's location is defined by setting

BDE/Configuration/Drivers/native/Paradox

NetDir = \\master\network

Depending on the system it is possible to establish a temporary location for data on a temporary server in the event of a server failure.

1. Switch the network identity of the temporary server to "master"

2. If running on NT then all stations must be altered to not log onto a NT network

3. If running on 95/98 then all machines must be on the same workgroup (lower case - no spaces)

4. Insert the latest data on the 'tempmaster' and establish it's shares to mirror those of the server (see above)


Machine settings

The following are the registry settings automatically checked each time the program runs.

NT Server

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentcontrolSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters]

"EnableOplocks"=dword:00000000

"CachedOpenLimit"=dword:00000000

NT Workstation

UseOpportunisticLocking 0

  	UseNtCaching 0

  	UseUnlockBehind 1

Windows 95/8

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentcontrolSet\

Services\Vxd\Vredir\DiscardCacheOnOpen 1

Control\Fielsystem\DriveWriteBehind 0

if running Novell networking software

Services\LanManServer\Parameters\EnableOpLocks 0

Services\LanManServer\Parameters\EnableOpLockForceClose 1

Services\LanManServer\Parameters\CachedOpenLimit 0

Services\LanManServer\Parameters\UseOpportunisticLocking 0

Services\LanManServer\Parameters\UtilizeNtCaching 0


Error messages


Program logic

Program logic and defaults

Vat calculations

In accordance with the VAT guide (notice 700) vat is calcuated on a line by line basis and each line is rounded according to the rules in Section 6 para 10 (a) -

"Calculation based on lines of goods or services. If you wish to work out the VAT seperately for a line 	of goods or services, included with other goods or services in the same invoice, you should calculate 	the seperate amounts of VAT either:

by rounding down to the nearest 0.1p - for example, 86.76p would be rounded down to 86.7p; or

by rounding to the nearest 1p or 0.5p - for example, 86.76p would be rounded up to 87p"

We have opted for the later choice.

Orders

To generate an order one of two things must happen. Either the actual stock has fallen below the minimum stock level set in you parts database (stock record) in which case an order has been generated to bring up back up to the minimum unless you have set a higher amount in the 'order in lots of' field or you have created a 'one off' order, again in parts database (stock record). If you have already placed an order and then sell more items or create a new 'one off' order then a fresh order will be created.

If you superseed a part number and you have an order which has not been placed then that order will be editted to the new number but if it has been placed then a new order will be created for the new number.

List Prices

You can switch off list price printing if you wish in the printer settings if you wish but the program will not print a list price if that price is less than what you are charging !

Customer's Terms

Default values exist whereby, for example, Retail less 50% will default to Trade if that is greater. Trade plus 50% will default Retail if the formula exceeds Retail. Cost plus will default to Trade etc

Currency Calculations

The line total is a multiplication of Quantity x Unit price which is then rounded. Vat at the rate for the item is applied to the line total and is then rounded. Both the line total and line vat are added to form the invoice totals.


Housekeeping

Housekeeping

All computer systems require some degree of housekeeping. If you are not going to do it your self then please contact us because it does need doing regularly. Each computer needs at the very least an ANNUAL SERVICE.

Reboot workstations (weekly)

Windows is the operating system used through 80% of all computers and although very stable it does seem to have it's quirks. Windows manages the computer's memory and occasionally that memory can become confused. Therefore, although it is often better to leave a computer running all the time you do need to shut it down occasionally in order for it to 'refresh' it's memory.

Reboot servers (fortnighly)

As above.

Indexing (fortnightly)

Imagine that your data is held in a card index box and you repeatedly take cards in and out. If for some reason they get out of order then it will take longer to find what you are looking for. It is very similar with a computer and data tables do need to be re indexed occasionally.

A utitility is supplied to reindex your data which is called "MakeIndex.exe".

It can be accessed from the UTILS folder or byclicking on START - FOREST SOFTWARE - MAKE NEW INDEXES.

Before it runs it will make a safety copy of your data to the folder DATA\PREINDEX

Defrag (quarterly)

Included in your windows folder is a program supplied by Microsoft called Defrag.exe. Your data is in a file which resides in a certain location on your HDD (hard disk drive). Imagine you HDD is divided into sections each of a certain size. You have the customer data file which happens to be of the exact size to occupy on section of the HDD. In using the program you open the customer file into memory, add a new customer then when you try to put it back into it's 'slot' it is now 1 record bigger therefore it splits the file and puts the extra part elsewhere thus fragmenting the HDD. This program gathers all parts of the same file and writes them back togather again.

Clean up folders(quarterly)

Using explorer locate your backup up folder and remove any unwanted files.

Locate also your data folder and remove all unwanted text files.

Locate your windows\temp folder and empty it.

Right click on your c:\ drive and select properties. Click on disk cleanup.

If you use the computer to access the internet empty your temporary internet files folder.

Update WINDOWS (quarterly)

Using Internet Explorer or the Windows Update icon in your START menu log onto windowsupdate.microsoft.com to get the latest updates.

Service your computer/s(bi annually)

Every 6 months remove your computer from service and remove the cover. Gently with a "dry" air line or vacuum cleaner remove the loose dust which will have gathered within the computer, taking care to not dislodge any of the internal components. When returing the computer to service make sure you insert the leads securely and do not disturb them when finally adjusting the position of your computer.


Backup data

Data safety

(Nothing is more certain than the fact that one day you WILL loose data !)

We do everything we can to help you avoid this but it does rely on your own good practice.

Automatic backups

Once you have begun using a database system for your record keeping your data develops a value which you should regard highly. In the event of a hard disk failure we can easily restore programs but cannot recreate all the data that the program has saved which is why your system for backing up data is vital.

Our system provides a switch to allow automatic backup to be active on every machine on the network. We recommend that you use this facility and give careful consideration to the way in which you store the backups so that the latest data can be easily retrieved.

The location should be entered in the 'path' box which will be saved for the next time.

This box pops up whenever you open or close the program and unless you click cancel it will start automatically within a few seconds. Each time it does it will save data to a 'logon' folder, a 'logoff' folder depending when it is being actioned.

Please note that our program receives on going development therefore all version dependant files are saved as part of this backup procedure.

The backup only saves your current data files, program files and version dependant utilities. It does not save the indexes since if you have to restore data it is a simple task to reindex the data.

If you have a zip drive then our recommended method in addition to the above is to have one machine set to backup to a sucsession of zip drives which can be removed from the premises. They should be labelled by the days on which you are open and rotated in turn. Occasionally begin a procedure to re format the entire set on sucsessive days.

If your main computer is a single user we recommend a combination of the above.

Our program also makes a daily copy of the contents of your open invoices to a text file which is located in your data folder. This is because the files containing this information are the ones which are most at risk since they are always open. We also backup up your history files before archiving them.

Save Data Regularly

From the Open Invoice screen you can do a manual backup to a location on your HDD into a dated folder at any time. Every so often you may delete folders when you are sure you no longer need them see housekeeping. These dated backups are located in C:\BACKUP


Downloads

Web site

Our web address which is www.forest2000.co.uk

It contains a dedicated client area which is accessible only by password. The password is contained in the program - click on Help - Log onto our web site. By doing this from our program you will be automatically routed through to the client area. Passwords can be obtained from our help desk which will allow you to access the client area from our front page.

Downloading a file...

When you click on a link to a file your will get the following options

Select the SAVE options and you will get the following screen asking where you wish to save the file

Network users should navigate through "Newtwork neighbourhood" to the MASTER\STOCK folder

Single system users should navigate to C:\PROGRAM FILES\FOREST\STOCK as shown above.